As others have said...the cargo was not being dropped on parachutes, the planes were landing to be unloaded...the only thing that was airdropped was the candy. LOL
I worked on USAF C-130's for 20 years, here is my humble description of Airlift and Airdrop. Airlift: is moving cargo from one airport and delivering it at a different airport. Airdrop: is delivering the cargo via parachute were the airplane never lands at the delivery destination.
The CANDY BOMBER 🍬 is my favorite part of this story. Just a random act of kindness that just spiraled into becoming one of the most memorable parts of the biggest humanitarian effort in history ... just ... legendary.
The German people were starving during WWII. Like half way through. There were German soldiers, whole platoons that would surrender as soon as the Americans showed up just so they could eat. Because they heard stories of American soldiers eating chocolate bars when chocolate was a luxury in Germany at the time. It was rare for the general masses to be able to buy chocolate.
The American logistics was so good that a German troop came across a package sent from the US to the warfront. It was a birthday cake and the icing had not melted yet. The commander of the German troop's heart sank. If America had logistics that good, the Nazis could not win.
Thats hardly the point tho The reason why it was an airlift and not an airdrop operation in the first place is because hydraulics with tail doors that you find on more modern cargo planes were not invented yet and so it was simply impossible to just come over and airdrop masses of cargo Not only that but its also safer to just drop off the cargo via airlift, airdrops are generally a secondary option that is far from preferable for large-scale logistics
The single best argument for capitalism vs communism is a light picture of the Korean peninsula from space. It is so extremely stark in contrast that it is undeniable, you do not need to understand anything about how the systems work at all… unless you’re in a communist (see: Dictatorship, Oligarchy, Fascist, etc… because that’s how communism actually works) state. You can point a toddler at that picture and provided they know electricity is a thing, they will instantly say South Korea is infinitely better to be in. Capitalism is a flawed system, communism is a fairy tale.
France was in bad shape after the war and they really couldn't directly do anything to help in terms of aircraft etc. They still did what they could to help The U.S. and Britain in their efforts, so don't discount them.
There a few people saying that France couldn't help West Berlin because of the state of the country but it wasn't all. French transport planes were "busy" in Indochina too. So as far as I know the French common effort was only focused on building an airport and supplying their own troops.
17:04 The French were involved in the First Indochina War at the time, so their air force was "occupied". They did have troops in West Berlin, though. The airport he mentions is the Berlin Tegel Airport, built in what was French territory at the time, and the German construction workers were lead by French military engineers. It was built in 90 days, and the first runway was built almost entirely by hand. For the second runway, they had to fly in pieces of heavy machinery on five different planes and reassemble it in Berlin.
For clarification, Germany and the USSR invaded Poland and divided it up starting WWII. The USSR was Germany’s ally up until Germany invaded them. Then they had a change of heart.
The french didn't help because remember during world war 2 Germany annexed and basically destroyed their entire air force. They don't have enough planes to help.
"Why weren't the French helping?" In case you forgot, the German war machine completely decimated much of France as they pushed westward from the outset of WWII - then the British and American forces decimated much of France again as they pushed eastward to take it back from Germany. With a few notable exceptions, most of France was in as bad of shape as (if not worse than) Germany. Even though France wasn't under a Soviet blockade nor had their entire economy shredded via hyperinflation, they still pretty much had their hands full trying to keep their own people warm and fed - even moreso since any supplies sent to Berlin were supplies not being sent to France. As I understand it, France's 'main contribution' to the Berlin Airlift was telling the UK and US to worry about the people of West Berlin - the French could make do on their own until the Berlin Blockade was resolved.
Germany was a big start of why WW2 started but there were alot of other factors going on too. The Germans signing a treaty with the U.S.S.R. to attack their chosen places while not attacking each other (which Germany later betrayed) you had a rocky alliance with Japan since We joined the war and we were fighting in the Pacifc and Europe so the Nazis and Imperial Japanese had some small communications here and there. Italy was a big economic ally of Nazi Germany and Mussolini and the way he led his army was actually a big inspiration for Hitlers plans so theres also that. Aloooootttt of factors led into WW2
France couldn't help. They had to rebuild everything that was destroyed before they could do anything. The reality is it was better for France to focus on rebuilding then it was to split their attention and make the rebuilding take longer. Also the C47 has side doors - you have to throw everything out of them. You're not able to parachute food out.
I agree but you have to give a lot of respect to the UK considering what England was dealing with even though they were never occupied they took a beating
The Brits were able to keep rebuilding during the war thanks to the supplies being shipped in. 3 years later there were still issues - but a tenth of what France was dealing with. France couldn't rebuild the damage that was done until the germans were kicked out AND supplies came in around 45. They were bringing in food supplies as well as seeds but the rebuilding supplies into France were less common due to the bottle neck of the mulberry harbors and it taking a while to seize a port. @@JustMe-gn6yf
@@PhycoKrusk well from a Americans standpoint it was still a lot to deal with considering we only had to deal with rationing during the war and not city blocks turned to rubble
@@JustMe-gn6yf I'm not disagreeing with you; I'm just adding that context to what you said to clarify that England did not struggle nearly as much as France, which is why they could contribute to the airlift and France could not.
germany, the japanese, and the italians. and conscripts. personal favorte is the 2 koreans who got conscripted to fight in 3 differnt armies before ebing resscured by the americans. because they kepted geetting conscripted. they thought the USA was gonna do the same. so they was surprised to find out they were being sent home lol
You're forgetting Italy. Understandable, they didn't really do much other than be annoying around the Mediterranean. (Also, I *very much* want to know what the music playing over William Tunner's introduction is from.)
As others have said...the cargo was not being dropped on parachutes, the planes were landing to be unloaded...the only thing that was airdropped was the candy. LOL
Yeah. Imagine dropping four thousand tons of *anything* on a city. Parachutes aren't going to do much but make the craters smaller.
"President truman is going to bitchslap their entire country with the sun."
Fat electrician has such a way with words😂
I worked on USAF C-130's for 20 years, here is my humble description of Airlift and Airdrop.
Airlift: is moving cargo from one airport and delivering it at a different airport.
Airdrop: is delivering the cargo via parachute were the airplane never lands at the delivery destination.
The CANDY BOMBER 🍬 is my favorite part of this story. Just a random act of kindness that just spiraled into becoming one of the most memorable parts of the biggest humanitarian effort in history ... just ... legendary.
Capitalism at its best. Companies dial an act of kindness up to 11 for marketing that draws in the whole country to participate.
And it all started with two sticks of gum.
The German people were starving during WWII. Like half way through. There were German soldiers, whole platoons that would surrender as soon as the Americans showed up just so they could eat. Because they heard stories of American soldiers eating chocolate bars when chocolate was a luxury in Germany at the time. It was rare for the general masses to be able to buy chocolate.
The American logistics was so good that a German troop came across a package sent from the US to the warfront. It was a birthday cake and the icing had not melted yet. The commander of the German troop's heart sank. If America had logistics that good, the Nazis could not win.
@@mangonut Yeah. I forgot about that story. There are many like it.
19:35 biggest hit to communist propaganda was east Germany having bread lines while west Germany had literal candy falling from the sky.
"Airdrop" means that cargo and troops use parachutes. "Airlift" means the bird lands and cargo is unloaded and troops walk off
Thats hardly the point tho
The reason why it was an airlift and not an airdrop operation in the first place is because hydraulics with tail doors that you find on more modern cargo planes were not invented yet and so it was simply impossible to just come over and airdrop masses of cargo
Not only that but its also safer to just drop off the cargo via airlift, airdrops are generally a secondary option that is far from preferable for large-scale logistics
The single best argument for capitalism vs communism is a light picture of the Korean peninsula from space. It is so extremely stark in contrast that it is undeniable, you do not need to understand anything about how the systems work at all… unless you’re in a communist (see: Dictatorship, Oligarchy, Fascist, etc… because that’s how communism actually works) state. You can point a toddler at that picture and provided they know electricity is a thing, they will instantly say South Korea is infinitely better to be in.
Capitalism is a flawed system, communism is a fairy tale.
Yes it was Germany also Italy..
France was in bad shape after the war and they really couldn't directly do anything to help in terms of aircraft etc. They still did what they could to help The U.S. and Britain in their efforts, so don't discount them.
There a few people saying that France couldn't help West Berlin because of the state of the country but it wasn't all. French transport planes were "busy" in Indochina too. So as far as I know the French common effort was only focused on building an airport and supplying their own troops.
17:04 The French were involved in the First Indochina War at the time, so their air force was "occupied". They did have troops in West Berlin, though. The airport he mentions is the Berlin Tegel Airport, built in what was French territory at the time, and the German construction workers were lead by French military engineers. It was built in 90 days, and the first runway was built almost entirely by hand. For the second runway, they had to fly in pieces of heavy machinery on five different planes and reassemble it in Berlin.
When I was eight or nine I got to meet The Candy Bomber and shake his hand. Looking back on it is so surreal to think about.
Brother your arms are the biggest flex of all time. Love your videos, can't wait for the next
16:45 That is a film of Uncle Wiggly Wings coming in to land while dropping his candy.
For clarification, Germany and the USSR invaded Poland and divided it up starting WWII. The USSR was Germany’s ally up until Germany invaded them. Then they had a change of heart.
France is really weak after ww2 they suffer pretty hard
Yeah. They were *occupied* by Germany through most of the war. So, they're kinda busy rebuilding.
The french didn't help because remember during world war 2 Germany annexed and basically destroyed their entire air force. They don't have enough planes to help.
"Why weren't the French helping?" In case you forgot, the German war machine completely decimated much of France as they pushed westward from the outset of WWII - then the British and American forces decimated much of France again as they pushed eastward to take it back from Germany. With a few notable exceptions, most of France was in as bad of shape as (if not worse than) Germany. Even though France wasn't under a Soviet blockade nor had their entire economy shredded via hyperinflation, they still pretty much had their hands full trying to keep their own people warm and fed - even moreso since any supplies sent to Berlin were supplies not being sent to France. As I understand it, France's 'main contribution' to the Berlin Airlift was telling the UK and US to worry about the people of West Berlin - the French could make do on their own until the Berlin Blockade was resolved.
Germany was a big start of why WW2 started but there were alot of other factors going on too. The Germans signing a treaty with the U.S.S.R. to attack their chosen places while not attacking each other (which Germany later betrayed) you had a rocky alliance with Japan since We joined the war and we were fighting in the Pacifc and Europe so the Nazis and Imperial Japanese had some small communications here and there. Italy was a big economic ally of Nazi Germany and Mussolini and the way he led his army was actually a big inspiration for Hitlers plans so theres also that. Aloooootttt of factors led into WW2
Alot of german cities were destroyed during air raids. You should look into the story of dresden if your interested
France couldn't help. They had to rebuild everything that was destroyed before they could do anything. The reality is it was better for France to focus on rebuilding then it was to split their attention and make the rebuilding take longer. Also the C47 has side doors - you have to throw everything out of them. You're not able to parachute food out.
I agree but you have to give a lot of respect to the UK considering what England was dealing with even though they were never occupied they took a beating
@@JustMe-gn6yf The south of England did, but the north was more or less fine.
The Brits were able to keep rebuilding during the war thanks to the supplies being shipped in. 3 years later there were still issues - but a tenth of what France was dealing with. France couldn't rebuild the damage that was done until the germans were kicked out AND supplies came in around 45. They were bringing in food supplies as well as seeds but the rebuilding supplies into France were less common due to the bottle neck of the mulberry harbors and it taking a while to seize a port. @@JustMe-gn6yf
@@PhycoKrusk well from a Americans standpoint it was still a lot to deal with considering we only had to deal with rationing during the war and not city blocks turned to rubble
@@JustMe-gn6yf I'm not disagreeing with you; I'm just adding that context to what you said to clarify that England did not struggle nearly as much as France, which is why they could contribute to the airlift and France could not.
You forget france was occupied by Germany for alot of the war.
France was still trying to rebuild after the war, they didn't have the capacity to help much.
You forgot Italy was also in w/ Germany....
germany, the japanese, and the italians. and conscripts. personal favorte is the 2 koreans who got conscripted to fight in 3 differnt armies before ebing resscured by the americans. because they kepted geetting conscripted. they thought the USA was gonna do the same. so they was surprised to find out they were being sent home lol
France isnt much help because they are doing not much better than Germany are at this point.
You're forgetting Italy. Understandable, they didn't really do much other than be annoying around the Mediterranean.
(Also, I *very much* want to know what the music playing over William Tunner's introduction is from.)
Surely someone has told him those are humpback whales.
France had little ability to help at this point
austria willingly joined germany... and hitler was austrian... just saying...